What Classical Homeopathy Is
Homeopathy began with Samuel Hahnemann (1755 to 1843), a German doctor who was unhappy with the harsh treatments of his time, such as bloodletting and heavy doses of mercury. While translating a medical book in 1790, he tested cinchona bark on himself and noticed that it produced symptoms similar to the fever it was used to treat. From this and many later experiments he built a complete method, which he set out in the Organon of Medicine, first published in 1810.
Classical homeopathy means practising the way Hahnemann taught, later developed by James Tyler Kent and, in our time, by Professor George Vithoulkas. Dr. Ismail practises in this tradition, learning from Professor Vithoulkas's books and webinar training and from the teaching of other classical masters. Many homeopathic products in shops mix several medicines in one bottle for a named illness. Classical homeopathy works differently: one medicine, chosen for one person, after a careful case.
The Four Core Principles
- Similia similibus curentur, usually translated as like treats like. A substance that can produce certain symptoms in a healthy person is matched to a sick person with similar symptoms.
- The single remedy. One medicine is given at a time, so the doctor can see clearly what it does and what to do next.
- The minimum dose. The smallest amount that can bring about a response is used, and it is not repeated more often than needed.
- Individualisation. Two people with the same diagnosis may need different medicines, because the doctor treats the person who has the illness, not only the name of the illness.
How a Classical Homeopath Chooses a Medicine
The heart of classical homeopathy is case taking: a long, careful conversation about you. The doctor listens first and asks questions later, roughly in this order of importance.
- The whole person: your story, how the problem began, what was happening in your life at the time.
- Mind and emotions: fears, anger, grief, worry, how you react to stress, whether you want company or prefer to be alone.
- Generals, the things that are true of you as a whole: thirst, feeling hot or cold, food cravings and dislikes, sleep and dreams, sweat, energy through the day, how weather affects you.
- Particulars: the exact symptoms of the complaint itself, where it is, what it feels like, what makes it better or worse.
- Medical history and family history, including reports and the medicines you take now.
The doctor then picks out the symptoms that are strongest and most unusual for that person and looks them up in a repertory, a large index of symptoms that lists the medicines known to produce each one. The short list from the repertory is then checked against the materia medica, the books that describe each medicine as a whole picture. The aim is the one medicine whose picture fits the person most closely.
A study example from Kent: two people have the same headache. One is irritable, very thirsty for large drinks and worse from the slightest movement. The other is weepy, hardly thirsty and feels better in open air and with company. In the materia medica these pictures point towards different medicines, Bryonia for the first and Pulsatilla for the second. This is study material for students, not advice to take anything. You can read Kent's descriptions in our Materia Medica library.
What a Consultation Looks Like at IZ Homeo
We work online only. Dr. Ismail sees patients by WhatsApp video from anywhere in Bangladesh, so you do not need to travel. A first consultation for a long-standing problem can take up to an hour, because there is a lot to understand. A recent or simple complaint is often much quicker.
- Book at our booking page and pay the ৳300 consultation fee by bKash (merchant number 01623829865).
- Join the WhatsApp video call at your time. Keep any reports and the names of medicines you take nearby.
- Dr. Ismail takes your case, then chooses your medicine and explains how to take it.
- Your medicine is sent from our own pharmacy. Medicines cost ৳200 to ৳1,000 depending on the treatment, separate from the fee,, sent cash on delivery to all 64 districts.
- Follow-up is free within 2 weeks for the same treatment.
Consultation hours are Sunday to Thursday 7 PM to 10 PM, and Friday 11 AM to 12 PM and 7 PM to 10 PM. We are closed on Saturday.
Acute and Chronic Treatment
An acute complaint comes on quickly and runs a short course: a cold, a sore throat, a stomach upset after bad food. Here the doctor focuses on the symptoms of this episode, how it started and what is different about you while you are ill. Follow-up is usually within days.
A chronic complaint has lasted months or years or keeps coming back: skin problems, allergies, digestive trouble, joint pain, long-standing headaches. For these, classical homeopaths give constitutional treatment, a medicine chosen for your whole make-up, not only the complaint. Hahnemann's ideas about deeper chronic tendencies, the miasms, belong here. Chronic treatment takes longer and needs regular follow-ups, because the doctor watches how you respond and adjusts step by step.
What Homeopathy Is and Is Not Suitable For
People most often come to us for long-standing problems that affect daily life, such as skin complaints, allergies, digestive trouble, hair fall, joint pain, sleep and stress problems, and recurring colds and coughs. You can see the full list on our conditions page. We will always tell you honestly if we think your problem needs a different kind of care.
Homeopathy is not a replacement for emergency care, surgery, or infections that need antibiotics. A broken bone, a heart attack, a stroke, a serious infection or a problem that needs an operation must go to a hospital or a conventional doctor. Homeopathy can be used alongside that care, not instead of it.
Go to the nearest hospital or call 999 now for chest pain, difficulty breathing, sudden weakness of the face, arm or leg, fainting, fits, heavy bleeding, a high fever with a stiff neck or confusion, severe pain in the belly, or a baby who is floppy, not feeding or breathing fast.
Using Homeopathy With Conventional Medicine
Many of our patients already take conventional medicines, and that is fine. Tell Dr. Ismail everything you take, including vitamins and herbal products, so he can see the whole picture. Keep seeing your other doctors and keep your tests up to date. Our guide on safety and conventional medicine explains this in more detail.
Diabetes, blood pressure, heart, epilepsy, thyroid and mental-health medicines are never stopped suddenly or by the patient on their own. The doctor may advise carefully on reducing other conventional medicines, step by step and together with your prescribing doctor where needed.
How Homeopathic Medicines Are Made
Homeopathic medicines are made from plants, minerals and some animal sources. The starting material is prepared as a mother tincture or ground with milk sugar, then taken through a process Hahnemann called potentisation: repeated steps of dilution, each followed by vigorous shaking, called succussion. The number of steps gives the potency. The medicine is then usually put onto small sugar globules or into liquid.
Choosing the potency and how often to repeat it is part of the doctor's job, and it depends on the person and the stage of the illness. Our guide to potency explains the scales and what the numbers on a bottle mean.
What the Evidence Says
We think you deserve an honest answer here. The scientific evidence for homeopathy is debated. Several large reviews have concluded that the research does not show homeopathy works better than placebo, and many scientists point out that current chemistry does not explain how highly diluted medicines could act. Homeopaths and some researchers point to clinical experience and to individual studies they consider positive.
We do not make promises about results. What we do give you is careful, unhurried attention to the whole person, a single medicine chosen with care, honest advice about when you need other care, and regular follow-up. You can decide with full information.
Guides in This Section
- How to take homeopathic medicine: timing, food, smells, storage and what to expect after a dose.
- Potency: what the numbers on a homeopathic bottle mean.
- Miasms: Hahnemann's theory of chronic disease.
- Organon of Medicine: the founding book of homeopathy, explained.
- Biochemic salts: the twelve tissue salts and how they differ from classical prescribing.
- Safety and conventional medicine: using homeopathy safely alongside other treatment.
- Materia Medica library: Kent's lectures on 205 remedies in English and Bangla, for study.
- Conditions we see: health problems people consult us for.